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The Second Child Syndrome:

When I was pregnant with my son, so many people made fun of me for things like taking bump pictures every single week and keeping up diligently with not one but two baby books. Everyone warned me that the more I did for my first child, the more any subsequent progeny would just look at with added jealousy because I wouldn’t do any of it for them since I’d be too busy chasing around baby #1.

Well… sadly they were partially right… but I’m fighting back!

So… I bought the same baby book when I found out I was pregnant with number 2 as I had with my son and I filled out a handful of pages and have taken a total of maybe five “bump” pictures. But if my little girl ever reads this I want her to know that this was NOT because she was the second child… it’s just because this pregnancy made me so stunningly sick for all but a few weeks and I had no energy to do anything but survive. I promise it’s not (exclusively) the toddler’s fault!

Luckily, thanks to some very generous friends and family, (and the excitement over there being a girl in my family again after what has been quite a while…) our second baby as plenty of new and new-to-her clothes and other useful items instead of all hand me downs. And, on the days when I’ve been feeling up to it, I’ve been trying to craft and plan other new details to specifically celebrate her coming arrival. I’ve made a little place to hang bows and hair clips (thanks to some examples from awesome friends), I’ve been making personalized really adorable onesies in various sizes, and I am working away at a hand knitted blanket very similar to the one I made my son, but in a new color scheme- only here’s a second child perk- I’ve gotten a bit better at knitting this time around so hopefully it will be a little less noticeably wonky than his turned out! We are also making a TON of freezer meals at the moment-possibly even more than last time- because we know they are going to be even more important this time around with a toddler to chase after.

I am especially looking forward to doing something a little different to make sure she still gets a very special baby book! One of the things I registered for this time around was the Project Lifebaby girl kit andI was thrilled to receive it! The prompt cards are so different than the book I had with my son because they don’t just focus on the pregnancy- they focus on family history and day to day realities as well- like what new technology is big at the moment or what the cost of living or best selling books were the month she was born. There are prompts for big milestones too, but also for everyday little things- things that are extraordinarily ordinary. Plus, the system is so easy that I’m hoping it will still be possible to find time once a month or two to print pictures and journal all at once so I don’t feel overwhelmed or behind.

So I hope this little one knows that even though she wasn’t our first child, she is definitely cherished, celebrated, and wanted. And while the skeptics may still see the one on one time that my son got that will basically be an impossibility with my daughter, I know that I’ve also learned a lot two and will have lots of time to build special memories with both my children… so let’s hope that helps keep the second child syndrome at bay!